Four persons arrested for trespassing ASI-protected Mahmud Gawan madrasa in Bidar

In Bidar, a group from the Muslim community had staged a protest outside Town police station demanding legal action against the trespassers who, they alleged, attempted to instigate communal violence

Bidar police arrested four persons in connection with the trespassing of the Archaeological Survey of India-protected Mahmud Gawan madrasa and performing puja inside on October 6 during the Dasara procession. Earlier, 9 persons had been booked for trespass.

Manish Karbikar, Inspector General of Police (North Eastern Range), informed The Hindu of the arrests on October 7.

Bidar MLA Rahim Khan demanded stringent action against the culprits for ‘attempting to instigate enmity between religious communities and provoke communal violence’.

Describing Bidar as a harmonious city known for peaceful coexistence of different communities with diverse cultural backgrounds and practices, Vinay Malage, a leader of Team YUVA, a non-governmental organisation working for conservation of heritage and the environment, demanded the formation of a fact-finding team to get to the bottom of the incident and ensure proper legal action against the culprits.  

“We, as peace loving residents of Bidar, want to ensure the harmony of the place remains as strong as before. Hence, we seek prompt and impartial action by the district administration and by the police department,” Mr. Malage said.

Mahmud Gawan madrasa is a 562-year-old heritage building in the old town of Bidar city. On October 6, the structure came into the limelight after a video clip showed a group of men breaking open the gate of the ASI-protected monument and forcibly entering the premises raising slogans hailing ‘Hindu Rashtra’ and ‘Bhavani Mata’ during the Olakote Bhavani Devi procession as part of Dasara celebrations.

Asaduddin Owaisi, national president of All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen and Lok Sabha member from Hyderabad, took to Twitter to call the trespassers extremists and questioned Bidar police and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai. He accused the BJP of promoting such activity to demean Muslims.